Koeman demands more respect for his star player

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Forced to handle yet another difficult situation regarding Lionel Messi, Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman demanded more “respect” for his disgruntled star.

Koeman said he understood why Messi was visibly angry when journalists asked him about the criticism directed at him by a former agent of teammate Antoine Griezmann when Messi arrived in Spain on Wednesday after a long flight.

“I need to defend Leo because if something happened to me after a trip of 15 hours in a plane back to Barcelona — you go outside and there is a lot of press asking that type of question — I would be dangerous and hate them as well,” Koeman said on Friday.

“We have to respect people like Messi more. And from what I have seen on the field and in training, there is no problem between (Messi and Griezmann).”

Eric Olhats, Griezmann’s agent until 2016, told France Football magazine last week that Messi has marginalized Griezmann in his “regime of terror” at the club where the Argentine supposedly “controls everything.”

When journalists asked Messi for his response, he wearily answered: “To be honest, I’m a bit tired of always being the problem for everything in this club.”

That set off another round of alarm bells at the Camp Nou about Messi’s future.

Many are concerned that the latest unpleasant episode is yet another reason for Messi to go through with his plan to leave the club. With his contract expiring at the end of this season, Messi will be free to negotiate with other clubs in January. There is widespread speculation he could be tempted to reunite with former coach Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.

Koeman said that while he does not feel it is his job to convince Messi to stay, he is confident the 33-year-old forward will prolong his 20-year stint at Barcelona.

“I hope he will stay in Barcelona,” Koeman said. “I think it is unbelievable what he has done for this club, but he is the main person to make a decision about his future.”

Barcelona will visit Atlético Madrid, the league’s only unbeaten team, on Saturday.

BARCELONA TO SELL OUSMANE DEMBELE FOR €50M

Barcelona set asking price for Manchester United to sign Ousmane Dembele in January

Barcelona are willing to offload Ousmane Dembele for a €50 million fee

  • Barcelona are willing to sell Ousmane Dembele to Manchester United in the January transfer window in a deal starting at €50 million (£45m), according to reports in Spain. United made a late push to sign Dembele in the closing stages of the transfer window last week after failing to land Jadon Sancho from Borussia Dortmund. Dembele, however, turned down the chance to join United and was intent on staying at Barcelona in order to win a place in Ronald Koeman’s side. United and Barcelona also ran out of time in negotiations as the Premier League side wanted to sign Dembele on loan with a purchase option, while Barca’s preference was to permanently sell the French winger. According to Sport, Barcelona’s stance remains unchanged and the club will be open to offers for Dembele in the next transfer window and are willing to sell for an initial €50m (£45m) fee. The report claims that Barca want Dembele to renew his contract, which would increase his valuation, but if the 23-year-old refuses then the club will look to offload him permanently. Manchester United failed in a late move to sign Ousmane Dembele last week (AP) Barca had been holding out for €100m (£90.6m) fee for Dembele a few months ago but the Spanish club have been forced to drastically cut their asking price. Dembele has less than two years remaining on his current deal and Barca do not want the player to enter the final year of his contract without signing a renewal. Barca’s hierarchy are reportedly annoyed with Dembele over his refusal to join United as the decision ended up scuppering Memphis Depay’s proposed move from Lyon to Camp Nou.

Dembele had reportedly held talks with Paul Pogba regarding a potential move to United and was said to have been open to the idea of playing for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side having initially had doubts. A move for Dembele to the Premier League could now be on the cards in January, with Liverpool also expressing their interest in the winger during the summer.

Barcelona financial situation hinders transfer says koeman

Hello, thanks for joining meA precarious financial situation brought on by the coronavirus pandemic seemingly meant the new Dutch boss could not strengthen his squad
Ronald Koeman concedes Barcelona ‘s financial situation restricted his movement in the transfer market as deadline day passed without any further incomings at Los Cules.
The likes of Arthur, Ivan Rakitic, Arturo Vidal and Luis Suarez departed Camp Nou during the window, while Barca brought in Miralem Pjanic and Sergino Dest, and youngsters Trincao, Pedri and Matheus Fernandes also signed on.
Lyon forward Memphis Depay was among those linked with a late switch to Barca, the
Netherlands international thought to have been keen on a reunion with Koeman.
Editors’ Picks
However, with Barca having announced €97 million in losses and a decrease of €203m in revenue – factors blamed on the coronavirus pandemic – no further reinforcements were brought in.
“The squad is okay, I’m happy with the squad I have,” Koeman told Barca TV.
“We have tried to improve the squad and in some positions we could, in some others we couldn’t. That was because of the financial situation of the club, so we have to accept it and keep working.”
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW | @RonaldKoeman on Barça TV+
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 9, 2020
Ansu Fati’s early-season performances have been a major plus, with the 17-year-old scoring three goals in as many La Liga games.
The exciting forward has also made the breakthrough into Spain ‘s full national team and Koeman knows he has a special talent on his hands.
“So far, his performance has been the best possible. We are talking about a 17-year-old player,” he added.
“At that age to play three games in a row at such a high level means he is very good, a great talent.
“Of course he still has a lot to learn, but he is a boy eager to keep learning, he trains every day to improve, so we are here to help him out.
“Now he is with the national team. Right now, there is nobody in the world who is 17 years old to play in such a high-level national team as Spain are.” Barcelona’s financial situation hindered transfers, admits Koeman
Sportvibes:Last updated
post

Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started